EUGENE, Ore. — Hundreds of walkers and runners gathered at Amazon Park Saturday to remind people about the importance of wearing a helmet. They also celebrated the recovery of a teenage skateboarder critically injured in a crash back in November.

Scotty Svetal received critical injuries after he was hit by a car while skateboarding in Eugene. Saturday one of his close friends organized a fundraiser run to support the teen during his recovery.

Around 200 people ran a 5K or walked a mile during the race. Scotty’s dad even pushed him in his wheelchair for the one mile walk. Their message is to seize the day, don’t take anything for granted, and wear a helmet to protect yourself from accidents like Scotty’s.

His family said it’s been a long road to recover that’s far from over, which is why events like this are so important.

“It’s a unique opportunity where we have some attention right now and we really wanted to raise awareness so other people don’t have to go through this sort of you know tragic event,” said Mike Svetal, Scotty’s dad.

At the end of the race, Scotty surprised the crowd by walking across the finish line with a little help from his dad.